Sunkissed

The Vaccines' song 'Sunkissed' is a poignant exploration of a tumultuous relationship, filled with vivid imagery and emotional depth. The lyrics paint a picture of a love that is both intoxicating and destructive, capturing the highs and lows of being deeply entwined with another person. The opening lines, 'Suck my blood out your middle finger / Hearts of glass, start to give you splinters,' set the tone for a relationship that is both painful and passionate. The metaphor of 'hearts of glass' suggests fragility and the inevitability of hurt, while the act of sucking blood hints at a vampiric, consuming love.

The chorus, with its imagery of lying on the grass and being 'sunkissed with tongues,' juxtaposes the natural beauty of the sun with the intense, almost aggressive act of kissing. This duality reflects the complexity of the relationship, where moments of peace and beauty are interspersed with anxiety and tension. The line 'We were surfing down a wave of anxiety' captures the sense of being overwhelmed by emotions, yet still riding the wave together. The wind running through 'forever hair' and the increasing heat on their skin symbolize the passage of time and the intensifying emotions as they 'came undone.'

The song also touches on themes of escapism and the fleeting nature of happiness. The reference to booking into the Hilton and growing a beard to look like Dennis Wilson suggests a desire to escape reality and live in a fantasy. However, the realization that 'time was like an athlete' and 'never lasts' brings a sobering truth to the forefront. The final verse, where the narrator falls asleep while watching 'The Man Who Fell to Earth,' adds a layer of melancholy and fear, as the partner feels afraid but finds solace in holding the narrator 'like cement.' This ending encapsulates the bittersweet nature of their love, where comfort and fear coexist.